Imagine your son or daughter received a significant college scholarship, but with some strings attached. A condition of the financial aid would be to take five or six specific courses. Would your child accept the conditions? I think that most students would accept the terms. Which means that you, the parent, if you are providing some support, can set some requirements for the “family scholarship.” Just five or six carefully selected courses can help your son or daughter’s get a first job and succeed in a career.

The crisis in employment for recent college graduates is only partly due to the recession. Most of the problem is that students flock to light majors that offer few job prospects. At one time, any college degree was a ticket to success. However, college degrees are more common and now and say little about the abilities of the new graduate.

With just a few of the right classes under their hats, even art majors can have a good shot at landing a job. (Image credit: AFP/Getty Images via @daylife)

The technology revolution increased the need for people with knowledge of science, mathematics and engineering, but the number of degrees granted in these hard majors is roughly stagnant. Instead, the big increase is in art, psychology and communications majors.

As a young college professor I reassured parents that even the frequently sneered at majors, such as art history, helped produced job market success. The new graduate might start out folding sweaters at the
Gap, but the college degree would lead to rapid advancement. I was wrong. Recent research indicates that a light major is accompanied by a low wage not only initially, but over one’s entire career. Those studies that show that college pays? Remember that the engineers, computer scientists and doctors are included in the average. The typical college graduate with a bachelor’s degree in art makes only as much as a community college graduate. Those last two years of college have zero value in the job market.

You probably don’t want to force your child to study engineering. If that is not his or her desire, you’d likely to end up with a dropout or a lousy engineer. However, your darling liberal arts major can pursue any major and also prepare for the work place by taking just five or six courses. As a parent, simply say, “Here is the support we can offer, and these courses are required. Take two of them a year until you’re done.” If eyes roll and tantrums are thrown, recommend a part-time job and the nearest community college.

The goal of this course selection is mostly to help the student get comfortable pushing numbers around and understanding the context in which people earn money.

Economics. If the college offers a one semester introduction to economics class, that’s perfect. Some schools offer two semesters, split between macroeconomics and microeconomics. Only the microeconomics is needed. This course will provide a broad perspective on the role of value, costs and prices. It’s absolutely required; allow no substitutions.

Statistics. Everyone in a position of responsibility looks at data. Not only do business managers look at data, but so also do political leaders and non-profit executives. A good statistics class will help the student become comfortable pushing numbers around and avoiding false interpretations.

Computer Programming. Just a one-semester course will do, so long as it’s actual programming in something like Java, Python or C++. Everyone needs to understand that data can get manipulated, sliced and diced. I have met many people limited in their careers because it never dawns on them that this data could be divided by that data, and resulting ratio compared to some other data source. Bonus value: a jobless college graduate who suddenly gets a desire to move out of her parents’ house will find computer programming the fastest path to employability. With a little bit of background, just six months of hard work can make a person employable at good pay.

Calculus I. The first semester of calculus lays out clearly the concepts of level, rate of change and change in the rate of change. One key lesson is that some things can be quickly estimated, then the estimate made as precise as needed by further calculations. Just that one concept is worth the tuition. Only one semester is needed unless the student is taking a major that requires more.

Communications. This should be unnecessary at the college level, but we live with imperfect high schools. Everyone looking for work that does not involve a shovel should be able to communicate clearly. Give a 10-minute explanation of something. Write up a three-page summary that is well organized, grammatically correct and properly punctuated. Both of these requirements should be met without using clip art and PowerPoint. You can grant a waiver if you’re really, really sure that your child achieved the standard in high school. The challenge will be finding a college course that really holds the student to the standards necessary for success.

Financial Planning and Management. Some colleges do not offer what your student needs, and others bury the course in the business curriculum for which a year of accounting is a prerequisite. What would be ideal is a course that explains the rudiments of accounting, then shows how to project revenues and costs using a spreadsheet. It may sound like a business course, but the concepts apply to governments and non-profits as well. Even those who think they will live on the artistic side of life will end up on the board of directors of a church, youth soccer league or food bank, where these skills will come in handy.

These courses provide useful knowledge and techniques, but they also signal to potential employers that the student has taken hard subjects. “I love medieval history, but I can also take a derivative, calculate a standard deviation and project an organization’s costs two years out.” That statement will have a hiring manager salivating. Good bosses appreciate the passion a student may show for a liberal arts subject, but want to also see discipline and an ability to learn what’s needed on the job.

When your new graduate has a paid position and needs to make a tough decision, he or she can also thank you for modeling the appropriate behavior: setting the right requirements even when they are unpopular.